Guest Author - Kimberly Button

The baggage tracking firm Sita announced that over 30 million bags were lost or mishandled by airlines worldwide in 2005. Though that number is just 1% of the total amount of bags handled by the airlines, it’s no consolation when you arrive at your destination and your clothes and personal effects don’t.

According to Sita, it took an average of 31 hours for missing luggage to be returned to its owner, and 240,000 bags were never recovered. No traveler ever wants the hassle of dealing with missing luggage. After working as a customer service agent with an airline, I suggest the following tips and hints to make sure your luggage arrives with you on your next flight.

• Only use carry on luggage. This is easier said than done, but it’s the only fool proof way you have on guaranteeing your luggage arrives with you. Rethink how many clothes and shoes you really need, and try to pack your belongings in the acceptable amount of carry on luggage allowed by your airline.

• Never, ever, ever pack car keys, money, essential medications or valuables in checked bags or any luggage that might not be able to be stored onboard the plane. The airlines are not responsible for replacing money or medications that you might need immediately and they will not pay for transportation if you’ve checked your car keys in your luggage and can’t drive your vehicle.

• Some planes are so small that your carry on luggage must be stored in the luggage compartment under the plane and then given back to you after the flight. Make sure to claim your luggage after your flight (many people forget in their haste of making a connection) and be sure to have luggage tags on all of your bags in case it must be stored beneath the plane and is misplaced.

• Put appropriate luggage tags on every single piece of luggage, checked or carry on. A phone number is a must, whether it’s a cell phone, the hotel phone or your home phone….just make sure you’re able to receive messages from the phone number. An address will help identify your luggage, but chances are the airlines will call first.

• If possible, double check the luggage tag put on your piece of luggage. As a customer service agent, I used to share a luggage tag machine with the agent next to me. Often times, we would accidentally grab the wrong tag while rushing to check people in. Make sure the three letter airport code matches your FINAL destination.

• If traveling with someone else, pack some of your items in the other person’s luggage and vice versa. That way, if one bag is lost you have at least some of your personal items with you.

• Buy luggage in any shade other than black. It’s difficult to search through a pile of lost luggage to find the hundredth rolling black bag, but it’s easy for an airline agent to spot a bright pink suitcase and expedite the return of your luggage.

• Know your destination information in case you need to file a claim. If you don’t know the address or phone number of your hotel or family, then you’ll need to call the airport back with the information, creating a delay in your claim and possibly a mess up with the paperwork.

• File a claim immediately at the airport. Don’t leave and call in the information.

• Get a phone number that you can call to receive a status report on your lost luggage. If you don’t receive your luggage within the time frame the agent states, be sure to call to see if there was a delay.

• If you’re luggage isn’t on the luggage carousel, don’t panic yet. If you had a long layover, your luggage might have been forwarded on an earlier flight and is waiting for you in the luggage office or with the customer service agents.

• Realize that the customer service agents that you’re dealing with at your destination probably don’t have much control over getting your luggage returned to you promptly. The problem is that your luggage never got transferred and is now sitting in another airport at the mercy of another airline agent. Airline agents at an airport can’t do much, so if you have a complaint call the airlines customer service number and a representative can contact the individual airports directly.

• The airlines are often responsible for supplying you with toiletries or monetary reimbursement if your luggage is delayed overnight. They are also responsible for monetary compensation in many cases if your luggage is severely damaged or if you can prove contents are missing. Though the agent might not offer this information freely, be sure to ask what your rights are.

• Though transporting luggage is free with your airline ticket, you can use private companies to transport your luggage. Luggage shipping companies such as The Luggage Club, Luggage Free, Luggage Forward and Carrymyluggage.com might get your luggage to your destination with a lot less hassle than the airlines can.


Kimberly Button is the author of The Disney Queue Line Survival Guidebook, the only Walt Disney World® Resort theme park guidebook that features scavenger hunts, trivia questions, word puzzles and hidden Mickey searches tailored to each attraction to alleviate boredom while standing in lines. For more information and to read an excerpt, visit www.disneysurvivalguide.com